The present invention relates to machines which require periodic servicing. More particularly, the present invention relates to systems for providing notice to an machine operator that a machine needs servicing.
The present invention is believed to have application for servicing any machine which requires servicing or maintenance including vending machines, coin operated laundry machines, video games, car washes, etc. However, the invention is believed to have particular application for servicing coin operated vending machines. Accordingly, the invention is described with particularity for use in servicing vending machines, but the invention is not intended to be limited thereto. Moreover, the term “machine servicing” is intended to be understood in its broadest sense to include any type of required machine maintenance or inventory support such as the replacement or repair of components, and the removal of excess coins and dollar bills, or the replenishment of goods.
Vending is a low profit per item industry. A can of soda can cost around 30 cents and may be sold for 50 cents or maybe even 75 cents. The amount of profit from an average size vending account does not justify the expenses involved in setting up a central host computer, a constant connection or the expensive support equipment. Operators want to make sure that their machines are running and that they are making money. Unfortunately, most soda and snack vending machines currently in use do not have a system or structure to communicate with a vending operator about their status.
Recently, there have been attempts to provide alert systems for notifying machine operators that one or more of their machines require servicing. Most such vending alert systems available use a dedicated phone line, dedicated cell phone or a dedicated broadband Internet connection to communicate machine status. Unfortunately, most machine operators cannot afford such alert systems as a dedicated connection adds additional expense to the operating costs of a machine.
There have been numerous attempts to address alert system shortcomings. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,430,268 discloses an inventory control system for a vending machine. This system uses a digital transmission, with a controller using memory (RAM/ROM) for assigning a default code. The system calls a server-based computer and transmits digital data that must be decoded to provide the vending operator with the fault. The system senses an inventory low and out-of-stock condition, which is redundant information to the vending operator. This system also requires a payphone to be nearby and requires modifications to be made to the payphone to allow it to interface with this system. Payphones are usually privately owned, therefore an agreement with the phone company would need to be made prior to modification to the payphone.
Meanwhile, U.S. Pat. No. 5,117,407 discloses a machine system which uses a voice synthesizer. However, instead of being an alert system, the speech synthesizer is designed to talk to the customer. U.S. Pat. No. 5,678,172, describes an alert system providing two-way communication between the vending machine and the central control station. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 5,519,718 describes a system using a base station to send out queries to a vending machine and requires two-way communication. U.S. Pat. No. 5,544,784 also describes a system requiring a two-way pager communication between a central computer and the vending machines.
An additional expensive system is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,844,808 which uses a host computer system to analyze data transmitted in a digital format. Meanwhile, U.S. Pat. No. 6,462,644 discloses an alert system using a WAN (wide area network) and sends out a digital data stream to a central computer that tracks the data and builds a database from sales. U.S. Pat. No. 5,761,621 describes a digital system inventory control system that relays the current inventory state of the machine at all times.
Unfortunately, these foregoing systems are expensive and not readily adapted for retrofitting an existing vending machine. It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a machine alert system that is inexpensive to manufacturer and can be used to retrofit existing vending machines.
It is an additional object of the invention to provide an alert system that does not require expensive communication systems or digital transmission equipment.
It is still an additional object of the invention to provide an alert system that does not require a monthly subscription fee.